Raising Revenue Right : A Roadmap for Domestic Resource Mobilization - Chapter 8 : Administrative Tax Data for Policy

Overview & Synopsis

This chapter explores how the rapid digitalization of tax administrations is transforming the collection and use of administrative tax data for policy making. It highlights the widespread adoption of tax management information systems (TMISs) and electronic invoicing, which enable governments to collect large-scale, high-frequency data on economic activity in near real time. Compared with traditional surveys, administrative tax data offer broader coverage, longitudinal tracking, and the ability to link information across government systems, making them valuable for policy analysis and research. The chapter demonstrates how tax data can be used to understand economic behavior, evaluate policies, and generate evidence-based insights, while also addressing challenges related to institutional capacity, data integration, privacy, and security. It further presents collaboration models, analytical tools, and practical recommendations to help governments, researchers, and public institutions strengthen the use of administrative tax data for informed decision-making and improved public policy outcomes.